Summary(1:07) Ivan, calling from Brooklyn Heights -- (1:20) Architect, helped design and build emergency hospital in Long Island -- (2:12) In March joined firm (AECOM) that specializes in large public projects -- (4:00) US Army Corps of engineers engaged AECOM to build hospital on a SUNY campus in Old Westbury -- (6:35) An intense task. Approved March 30, the project moved extremely quickly -- (9:20) Worked 12 hours a day -- (9:45) Project completed in 3-4 weeks. Speed and organization of project approached the feeling of a wartime project -- (10:45) Facility switched from an overflow facility for non-Covid patients to a Coronavirus hospital -- (13:00) Facility eventually not needed, held in reserve -- (15:50) Reevaluating his ideas about role of architecture in society.
NoteAudio interview conducted on May 6, 2020, by Ariane Loeb. Collected for the Covid-19 Oral History Project through Our Streets, Our Stories, an oral history project of Brooklyn Public Library. This project is a partnership with Services for Older Adults and the Brooklyn Collection.
SubjectQuarantine ; COVID-19 (Disease) ; Epidemics; Coronaviruses ; Architecture ; Hospital buildings--Design and construction
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TitleOral history interview with Ivan Himanen conducted on May 6, 2020.